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Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if you want to hear Hans Zimmer's lovable, though intentionally dysfunctional combination of Nino Rota's European sensibilities with zany 1950's lounge rhythms. Avoid it... if accordions, whistlers, high 50's jazz, a little Zimmer techno, and snappy rhtyhms could potentially cause you obsess over house-cleaning projects. Filmtracks Editorial Review:
The effective result of Zimmer's assigned combination of sounds works well for Matchstick Men. The flair for comedy writing that Zimmer possesses is on full display here, with the personality of the music shining through from several creative solo performances. Of course, the accordion is an essential piece of European culture, and Zimmer works it into nearly every tango-rhythmed cue of the score. For those of you who wish death upon accordion players, take heart in Zimmer's knack for featuring the accordion without allowing it to run away with the spotlight. It serves an accompanying role much like the whistler(s) do. The whistling is the essential piece of the innocent, 1950's equation, offering an excellent point to the main character's obsession with cleaning his environment. A '50's band, complete with all of the woodwinds that you heard in pop jazz of the time, are floated with marimbas, a vibraphone, and keyboarding that places the score squarely in a loungey atmosphere. The swing of the score reaches its height in "Carpeteria," which is a cue that has the capacity to make you get up and shake your hips. Despite the temptation to connect this sound with John Williams' more stylistically reserved jazz in Catch Me If You Can from last year, Zimmer's work for Matchstick Men is more wacky (you can't help but shake your head at the chirping bird sounds at the start of "Weird is Good"), lovable in a slightly dysfunctional sort of way, and considerate of the genre from which it was derived. The Nino Rota-laced score is inspired directly from some of the songs utilized in the film, with the falsely innocent Swedish Rhapsody perfectly establishing the double-faced mood for Zimmer's underscore. The inclination to stay close to Rota's works causes a very obvious, though welcomed waltz inspired by The Godfather in the final cue of the album, "The Banker's Waltz." Likewise, a hint of European tragedy in drama can be heard in "Shame on You," which is the first and only cue that expands upon the family drama; it once again puts Zimmer in the position of utilizing his favorite, classical chord progressions with the strings. For the most part, the synthesized elements typical to Zimmer's studio are placed at a lower priority to real instruments for the project. The score can get on your nerves, however. Unless you specifically seek the score for its specific atmosphere, its happy-go-lucky spirit and similarly themed songs could test your patience. There is only so much of that zippy, light-hearted comedy writing from the 50's that a person can tolerate before fearing that you'll get one of those false 50's-era smiles plastered permanently on your face (Americans will recognize these hideous smiles from "male enhancement" television advertisements in the U.S. during 2002 and 2003). Even in its authenticity, the lounge band elements are slightly off-kilter during all of their performances, likely an intentional move to keep the audience on edge during scenes of criminal activity. Like the characters in the film, the score is thus intentionally flawed in its hiccupping rhythms and sometimes incongruent bass string plucking. Only one Zimmer score cue is remarkably out of place; the techno-laced "Tuna Fish and Cigarettes" cue (a coming of age burst of reality) is an abrasive shot into the musical future and does not fit with the surrounding Rota-like score. The songs from the film fit reasonably well with Zimmer's work (the Wayne Newton song is omitted from the album, however), although their placement throughout the album could mess with Zimmer enthusiasts' enjoyment of the score's merit. The opening song by Bobby Darin has perhaps the best attitude and subject matter for the film and score. On the other hand, the Swedish Rhapsody, although establishing an almost carnival atmosphere (mentioned previously as a good influence for Zimmer's fluffy work), explodes right out of the score and could give a person nightmares of runaway Scandinavian merry-go-rounds. The album's notes and credits are presented with the same zany spirit heard in the music, with Zimmer seemingly getting more freely humorous with every score he produces. Overall, you have to admire Zimmer's talent and ability to meld two genres as per Scott's eccentric wishes, but Matchstick Men is a score better appreciated than enjoyed. If you listen to it too often, you get the feeling that you might start exhibiting behavior like that of Roy Waller in the film. ***
Insert includes a lengthy note about the film and score from one of the film's music supervisors. It also includes a vulgar quote from Ridley Scott. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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